How to synchronize a database?

[sinsi]

You shouldn't really use TerminateThread, it's usually a last resort.
Why not set RDCenabled to FALSE and let the thread clean up and exit properly?

TerminateThread is a dangerous function that should only be used in the most extreme cases.

[NoCforMe]

You shouldn't really use TerminateThread, it's usually a last resort.
Why not set RDCenabled to FALSE and let the thread clean up and exit properly?

TerminateThread is a dangerous function that should only be used in the most extreme cases.

Good question.
Here's the thing: in the watch routine (RDCmonitor()), ReadDirectoryChangesW is called in an endless loop (unless the flag RDCenabled is set to FALSE). This means that almost all the time, that routine is waiting for ReadDirectoryChangesW to return (called synchronously, remember), so there's no way to check any flags to exit the routine.

There is this code

Code Select Expand

again: CMP RDCenabled, FALSE
JE exit99
which will exit the thread, but ReadDirectoryChangesW has to complete and return before that can happen.

I tried using ExitThread() outside that routine to shut it down, but that doesn't work. So that's why I use TerminateThread() instead; it reliably terminates the thread (hey, that's why it's called that, huh?), in case you want to change the directory being monitored. Otherwise, you can just leave it running in that infinite loop.

Things would work differently, of course, if you used asynch operation instead, but I haven't tried that yet. This seems to work well and it's simpler.

So I wonder what's so "dangerous" about TerminateThread()?

[sinsi]

CancelSynchronousIo

Marks pending synchronous I/O operations that are issued by the specified thread as canceled.

Then just check the return status I would guess.

[NoCforMe]

I'll have to look into using that.

[mabdelouahab]

FileSystemWatcher

[sinsi]

FileSystemWatcher

VB.net?

*ducks for cover*

[zedd151]

FileSystemWatcher

VB.net?

*ducks for cover*

Even worse...

C#

Otherwise known as C Sharp. Might as well be Python.

[sinsi]

Happy to be the pedant 
Depends on what you viewed last (yes, I just outed myself as a vb.net user )
You cannot view this attachment.

[zedd151]

Depends on what you viewed last

From the example code in the posted link. 

(yes, I just outed myself as a vb.net user )

Blasphemy! 

[sinsi]

My point was that you can change the .net language of the page to suit what you use.
I last used VB.net, so the website remembers that.
You cannot view this attachment.

[zedd151]

My point was that you can change the .net language...

No thanks.

[NoCforMe]

FileSystemWatcher

I'll bet that uses ReadDirectoryChangesW() under the hood.

[NoCforMe]

CancelSynchronousIo

Marks pending synchronous I/O operations that are issued by the specified thread as canceled.

Then just check the return status I would guess.

OK, I give up: why isn't CancelSynchronousIo() in any of the Masm32 include files?

Aaargh; gotta use LoadLibrary() and GetProcAddress().

[sinsi]

gotta use LoadLibrary() and GetProcAddress

It's in the Windows 10 SDK kernel32.lib but not MASM32.
Does that mean that MASM32 hasn't been updated to Vista?

[zedd151]

Does that mean that MASM32 hasn't been updated to Vista?

Probably since Windows xp.